Together with

Locally-based dance company founder, Alexander Whitley, brings a new double-bill to Sadler’s Wells East this month, exploring his ongoing fascination with where technology meets the human body.

It’s the culmination of a long term vision for the choreographer. “One of the reasons I moved to Hackney Wick in the first place was knowing that Sadler’s Wells was coming here,” he smiles. “This show was originally supposed to happen back in 2020, but with Covid, significant construction delays and lots more, it’s a relief to finally be putting it on.”

The programme pairs two new creations, The Rite of Spring and Mirror, which offer contrasting perspectives as to how society and individuals might cope with the growing influence of algorithmic systems in all of our lives.

Drawing on mythology and machine logic as much as the physicality of his dancers, Whitley pushes further into what’s possible with a hybrid live and digital performance.

“The Rite of Spring is the classic Stravinsky,” he says, “a piece of music that I've loved for incredibly long time, and always had in the back of my mind as to how I might take it on with the use of digital technology.

“It has an incredible legacy in terms of the controversy it created when it was first premiered back in 1913,” he explains, “and has become a signature work that choreographers take on and bring something original to. Alongside the show, we’ve also been developing a virtual reality version of the piece, too.”

Alongside that sits Mirror, a more intimate duet inspired by philosopher Shannon Vallor’s book The AI Mirror, which explores AI from a cautious, moral-philosophical perspective.

“The piece looks at the impact of how interactions with a kind of AI affect the relationship between two people, and ultimately undermine their human connection to each other.”

Alexander Whitley Dance Company has always been associated with ambitious uses of digital tools on stage, but he’s wary of the simplistic way tech is being portrayed today – as either the key to human salvation, or its looming existential threat.

“I've always been interested in working with technology from this double-prong perspective,” he reveals. “On the one hand, yes, there's a curiosity about the new creative territory it opens up for developing art forms and practices, but I’m equally keen to critically engage with the impact and challenge it brings at a broader societal level. There’s always a tension there.”

That tension between fascination and concern about our technologies is where his work lives, a direct rebuke to those binary, love-it-or-loathe-it narratives.

In the unique auditorium at Sadler’s Wells East, you’ll see live motion-capture tracking the dancers, which generates real-time visuals on the stage in response to their movements. The delays in staging the show has also allowed the very latest AI systems to be integrated, “so in some parts, the visuals you’ll see are being augmented ant processes through generative AI, too,” says Alexander.

He’s particularly keen to see if this approach will resonate with some of the students studying such technologies at the Universities now also based in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. If that introduces a few newcomers to the joy and physicality of dance for the first time too, then Whitley’s interplay of tech and humans will really be delivering on its complex, yet ultimately optimistic promise.

🩰 The Rite of Spring / Mirror, Sadler’s Wells East, 18th-21st Mar with tickets from just £15

🏙️ There’s the chance to have your say over the proposed future of the big Wickside development, with an invitation to join their team for discussions at either The Lord Napier next Wed 11th Mar or alternatively The Trampery Fish Island Village on Thurs 12th Mar. You’ll be able to hear about the vision for a new town centre for Hackney Wick with room for 13 new premises. Both events run 6pm-9pm, please RSVP

💥 There’s a celebration of colourful paint explosion of the Holi festival at the Holi London 2026 taking place all this afternoon, Wed 4th Mar, on the outdoor terrace at Riverside East. Tickets to the paint chucking element are sold out, but you can eat, drink and listen to DJs while watching the participants give it their all.

🍽️ The latest venture from prolific local events collective, Queer Edge, is QE Dine, a monthly residency that transforms dinner at Fish Island’s Unlock into a communal celebration of queer culture. Next Thurs 12th Mar (and every second Thursday of the month thereafter) sees a collaborative menu from local queer chefs, with Zoe Argiros (Ottolenghi, Acme Fire Cult, The Clink) specialising in live-fire and modern fine dining, Robert Ninebob (Little What You Fancy) known for community-led food culture and refugee support initiatives, alongside Unlock’s acclaimed Head Chef Emanuele Esposito, DJ Spectrum on musical duties and your fabulous host MC, Rhys’ Pieces.

🏺 Bottle Factory Flea Market on Sun 8th Mar is a curated flea market bringing over 40 traders to Hackney Bridge. It’s a collaborative hub for sustainable finds, from vintage threads to quirky archival homeware on the water-side.

🎬 A new film which celebrates eleven trailblazing women from the borough’s past, Women from Hackney's History, has been commissioned by The Hackney Society. It premieres at the Rio Cinema on Sun 8th Mar with a post-screening Q&A with the director.

🌍 If you’re into healthier, fairer, and more sustainable urban futures, head to the Royal Docks Centre for Sustainability at the University of East London (UEL) for the three-day festival designed to shape Sustainable Cities Festival 2026. The event aims to bring together communities, businesses, educators, policymakers, and innovators through inspiring talks, practical workshops, site tours, and networking, 4th - 6th Mar.

🥳 Fun Palaces hosts a free celebration, also at Trowbridge Gardens, to mark the final stop of their national exhibition tour at Creative Voices, Activist Voices Closing Party. The event features food from Thingy Café and highlights community activism of all kinds, tonight Wed 4th Mar.

There’s as Oscars Special featuring one of the most acclaimed films of 2025, as the New Black Film Collective scree Sinners, which sees twin brothers return to their Mississippi hometown to start again, only to discover that a greater evil is waiting to welcome them back. It’s on this Fri 11th Mar at BLOC Cinema at Queen Mary University, plus a Q&A afterwards.

🗣️ Join over 200 social entrepreneurs, charity leaders, and changemakers all focused on the theme of resilience, at the Mission Economy Summit 2026, presented by the School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE) tomorrow, Thurs 5th Mar at Rich Mix. You’ll head bold civil society voices discussing the big issues of the day.

🪘 Jazz East is brining the virtuosic and eclectic Basil Hodge Quintet ft Tony Kofi to a special event inside the Park Kitchen & Bar at Sadler’s Wells East on Tues 10th Mar for Jazz Africa! Expect to hear afrobeat, township and the devastatingly funky rhythms of Kuti, Dibango, Dollar Brand and many more, plus ticketholders get their first drink free.

🪩 Queer Edge Late is the flagship monthly party from the leading East London queer collective - a mix between a friendly bar and a full-on nightclub, the party is all about connection and celebrate self-expression. It returns to Hackney Bridge with headliner Ross Anderson this Fri 6th Mar.

🎶 For something a little bit different - say, an all night journey through Persian Disco, Psychedelic Tribal Bandari and pulsating techno, perhaps? - head to Persian Love: Sar Umad Zemestoon (Winter is Over) at Colour Factory on Sat 7th Mar, as DJs Milli and Anahita Shamsaei bring underground Tehran to Hackney Wick.

🖼️ Wax On Tap Record Fair at All My Friends Sun 8th Mar is your chance to uncover some rare black gold from eight specialist dealers at a laid-back afternoon of digging, soundtracked by Shokunin and Skip Wooznam playing all-vinyl sets, naturally.

BUSINESSES: profile your own local venture, offer and events to over 8,000 locals via this newsletter and 1,000s more on our social channels. Sign up to The Wick Business Community today to get things rolling.

READERS: We’re currently expanding the benefits of becoming a paid subscriber to The Wick, so if you’d like to improve your experience of the local area while also supporting our journalism, newsletters, meetups and events, take a look at the premium upgrades - we’d love to have you on board 😍

📕 Remember, if you’re not already in possession of a copy, buying The Wick Book is also a direct way for you to support all this, while also getting a stunning 160-page historic record for your coffee table, looking back at 15 years of culture, community and change in the neighbourhood.

🌉 Local businesses impacted by the protracted closure of Roach Point Bridge can challenge their VOA valuation for potential rates reduction. Business rates payers just must submit their challenge as early as possible and certainly prior to the reopening of the road or bridge. Check your eligibility now.

💦 Stratford based conservation and moorings cooperative, Surge Coop, are running a crowd funder to continue tackling the rapid growth of pennywort on the Channelsea river in Newham, by acquiring a new boat. It will enable volunteers to directly support the vital waterway ecosystem and all those connected to it.

🏢 The next stage of the Stratford Cross development, formerly known as IQL, aims to create new homes, student accommodation and co-living, a public park and retail facilities. They are running two sessions for locals to meet the Lendlease team and architects, learn more about the emerging proposals, ask questions, and share views on the next phase of development. Thurs 5 Mar at Carpenters and Docklands Centre. You can also find more information and share your thoughts online here.

📦 Book now to attend Enterprise4Good’s How to Become an East Bank Supplier...or Not! Understanding Supply Chains on Tue 17th Mar at Sadler's Wells East's Park Kitchen & Bar. The event aims to break down the procurement process, helping local businesses navigate the dos and don'ts to understand what it takes to get a foot in the door and securing contracts with East Bank partners including the BBC, V&A and UCL.

📈 UCL School of Management and London College of Fashion (UAL)’s free, 6-week intensive growth programme Business Builder Programme is back for 2026. Designed specifically for East London SMEs with 1–4 employees, the course provides a Smart Goal Action Plan, expert mentorship, and a certificate of completion. Apply by Fri 27th Mar.